Anyone else not striking?

[goingpearshaped]

I am not in UCU so not striking. Anyone else? I can sense the divide already between those striking and those not in our dept, I really hate this. Agh, what a mess all round.

On the UCU elections, am I right in thinking that Jo Grady's successor is Maxine Looby? She works in FE rather than HE. That could take UCU in an interesting direction. Or have I misunderstood?

@ghislaine

On the UCU elections, am I right in thinking that Jo Grady's successor is Maxine Looby? She works in FE rather than HE. That could take UCU in an interesting direction. Or have I misunderstood?

She is the Vice President I think so she would not be replacing Jo Grady who is General Secretary. The VP goes on to become president I think but that’s a different role to GS.

Ah, I see. Thanks for the clarification.

I'm noticing that external examining is the latest frontier of UCU ideology. People's decisions to remain as external examiners are being very heavily policed and scrutinised

Our branch strike dates have just been changed because they didn't bother asking branches when their term dates were!

I am a paid journal editor so I guess I should be resigning that

Just to thank everyone for all their contributions to this thread. Have been contemplating leaving the union for a while now, and this discussion has reinforced it.
Membership cancelled 👍🏻

Our branch Twitter feed proudly boasts a photo of a picket, including a huge placard stating 'We are the univesity' (with that exact spelling)....

Insisting on correct spelling reinforces grammarian imperialist norms, doncha’ know?

@ghislaine

Insisting on correct spelling reinforces grammarian imperialist norms, doncha’ know?

It does. I feel like I need to call it out on a long Twitter thread 😆. Why should someone working at a university need to be able to spell?

@AlwaysColdHands

Just to thank everyone for all their contributions to this thread. Have been contemplating leaving the union for a while now, and this discussion has reinforced it. Membership cancelled 👍🏻

Yay! Good for you! I think that even some of the die-hard UCU fans are starting to question the tactics regarding this dispute, especially now that they are balloting AGAIN, having achieved nothing in the past few months, and with the current mandate expiring before the exam period.

It also makes me laugh when Jo Grady talks about the VCs’ inflated salaries. I agree that they’re inflated but she also has an inflated salary! I think she’s on 150k. Not bad work for an SL with no experience of union leadership. And, of course, she doesn’t have to lose any of it to 50+ days of strikes, which must be nice. So, I’d cut VC pay but also union leadership pay. 😂

Many of my colleagues are and I feel like I should but I have to get my students finished. They are nursing associates and their programme has already been massively disrupted by so many reasons.

@Libertybear80

Many of my colleagues are and I feel like I should but I have to get my students finished. They are nursing associates and their programme has already been massively disrupted by so many reasons.

If you’re at a post-92, you’d be mad to strike, as the whole USS thing has totally overshadowed the dispute now. The 4 fights thing was always quite bland, with UCU not saying what exactly they wanted out of it, other than an unrealistic pay demand that will never happen. But now that the USS cuts have gone ahead, that’s all the pre-92s care about and if you’re at a newer Uni, you will just be sacrificing your pay for a fight that you have no stake in.

I'm noticing that external examining is the latest frontier of UCU ideology. People's decisions to remain as external examiners are being very heavily policed and scrutinised

Actually I think that asking external examiners to resign is likely to be one of the most effective measures in terms of harm/benefit. As far as I understand external appointments are an extra to one's main job - an EE would lose some nice extra income, and also potentially some kudoz (at my place, EE appointments elsewhere count for promotion). But the department being externally examined wouldn't face any sanctions I don't think - you could say "Hey we really want to have our exam boards and award our degrees but what can we do without an EE". And it would obviously bring serious disruption to a university, if an entire cohort couldn't graduate.
Of course if someone is harrassed on social media for not resigning their EE post is bad. Also, EE resignations aren't likely to cause much serious harm until May/June - i.e. they would need a new ballot and mandate. So I can perfectly understand someone intending to resign as EE but waiting to do so until a new mandate comes in.

I agree - refusing to EE is way more effective than striking imo. It’s more or less an assessment strike without being punished by your own employer

I remain in the union for the support I get - as I said ages ago to a colleague who "wasn't a joiner", it's like saying "I don't have insurance because I'm not a joiner".

@aridapricot

I'm noticing that external examining is the latest frontier of UCU ideology. People's decisions to remain as external examiners are being very heavily policed and scrutinised

Actually I think that asking external examiners to resign is likely to be one of the most effective measures in terms of harm/benefit. As far as I understand external appointments are an extra to one's main job - an EE would lose some nice extra income, and also potentially some kudoz (at my place, EE appointments elsewhere count for promotion). But the department being externally examined wouldn't face any sanctions I don't think - you could say "Hey we really want to have our exam boards and award our degrees but what can we do without an EE". And it would obviously bring serious disruption to a university, if an entire cohort couldn't graduate.
Of course if someone is harrassed on social media for not resigning their EE post is bad. Also, EE resignations aren't likely to cause much serious harm until May/June - i.e. they would need a new ballot and mandate. So I can perfectly understand someone intending to resign as EE but waiting to do so until a new mandate comes in.

Sorry I wasn't clear in my last post. I agree - a mass resignation of EEs would be a good approach for action, much better than strikes.

But UCU isn't calling for this, they're just pushing forward with more strike action.

What I meant in my last post (particularly by my hard hard hard eye roll) was that EE posts are emerging as the latest battleground for UCU Twitter warriors. You have all the EEs who're loudly announcing their resignation on Twitter to rounds of applause. Then, you have all the UCU Twitter warriors asking 'If you're an EE and you've not resigned yet, why not?'.

I wasn't really making a comment on the validity of resigning as EE as a form of industrial action, just commenting on the relentless policing of academics' choices/behaviours on Twitter.

Yeah, while EE resignations would be effective if they were the policy of UCU, the fact that people are independently resigning rather than it coming from the union doesn’t help that much to push for employers to negotiate.

@worstofbothworlds

I remain in the union for the support I get - as I said ages ago to a colleague who "wasn't a joiner", it's like saying "I don't have insurance because I'm not a joiner".

Did you colleague mean they're not 'a joiner' as they're not someone who works as a joiner? Like woodworking? Or did they mean that they're just not someone who likes to 'join' stuff? Like clubs, schemes, memberships etc? I'm confused

The insurance point is interesting though. Unions can certainly act as insurance for if/when things go wrong at work. For me though, the most likely thing to go wrong is complaints because of my stance on women's rights, biology, and existence. My UCU branch has made absolutely clear that they wouldn't offer me any support in these circumstances.

Yes I don't think the UCU is officially asking EEs to resign at this point? I had a look at the "working to contract" guidance and it isn't mentioned - although I suppose you could argue it's something that falls outside normal contractual duties. I get the sense it's now something similar to the "digital picket line", which is something the UCU isn't requesting specifically, but of course it provides plenty of opportunities for performativity on social media...

@aridapricot

Yes I don't think the UCU is officially asking EEs to resign at this point? I had a look at the "working to contract" guidance and it isn't mentioned - although I suppose you could argue it's something that falls outside normal contractual duties. I get the sense it's now something similar to the "digital picket line", which is something the UCU isn't requesting specifically, but of course it provides plenty of opportunities for performativity on social media...

^ This is exactly what I was trying to say. Thanks @aridapricot You've summed it up really succinctly.

I can't see UCU going for a mass EE resignation as an official method of industrial action. For all their big talk, most UCU warriors wouldn't actually want to disrupt students' education or jeopardize their own career ambitions.

I think EE resignations can't form part of UCU's actions because they count as an 'incitement to secondary action' which is not lawful and isn't collective action either.

Me too, @KStockHERO. My branch have made it clear that it wants ‘TERFs’ out of academia. They won’t protect me. I’ve also seen so many other people with genuine issues be let down by the union time and again. You’re better off getting a good legal expenses cover on your house insurance so that you can take action if they fire you for having the wrong opinions. Much cheaper than 25 quid a month too.

Or did they mean that they're just not someone who likes to 'join' stuff? Like clubs, schemes, memberships etc? I'm confused
This.
My conversation was absolutely ages ago (pre DCs and indeed pre DH) but I've had help with flexible working stuff etc. - things that are definitely "women's business".
At the time, some of my issues which might need union involvement were things like safe working practices when I was on fieldwork (and the same would apply to lab staff etc.).
I think it's probably worth making sure that your home insurance or similar has good cover for work-related issues if you are not in the union. I could never have paid e.g. a solicitor to do the work the union has.

I had no idea about the new 5 days until yesterday when a colleague told me. I have opened every email I've seen from the branch but it's all about voting just now for a local thing